Take a Look at the Lawman
by sudipal
Summary: Another Sam Tyler is the Master story. But in this one, what if the Master accidentally died and regenerated? How would the gang react?


There was a commotion in the police station. The obedient girlfriend fired her gun in the hopes of giving her man the chance for a quick getaway. But the cops quickly retaliated and bullets were flying all over the place. It was sheer chaos until Gene was finally able to sneak up behind the woman and grab her to the ground. He handed her over to Ray to take care of. With the station in disarray, it was Annie who first noticed.

"Sam, you've been shot!" said Annie.

"So I have," said the Master, looking down to where the bullet had penetrated. He touched his hand to the blood and stared at it curiously. "Why is it always the women? I mean, really! This is getting ridiculous." He collapsed to his knees. Annie ran to support him in her arms.

"Sam, we need to get you to a doctor." She could hear his breathing growing more rapid and harsh.

"Doctor...?!" whispered the Master with great difficulty. "He'd... just... rub it in." His eyes suddenly closed.

"Sam?" shouted Annie. "Sam!"

Annie cried over Sam's limp body. But just then, the corpse began to glow and she was pushed back by some strange force. She had to shield her eyes from the light. When the light died down again, she looked towards Sam's body only to discover a completely different person. This new person was about the same height as Sam, but had a longer face with darker hair and eyes.

This new figure quickly got to his feet and said, "Ugh, I always hated doing that. Ooh, new voice! Let's see now... hair! No beard again, but that's okay. Do you have a mirror, Annie? Annie, you okay?"

Annie was overcome with shock. "Who are you? What'd you do with Sam?"

"Hmm?" said the man. "Oh right! I'm Sam. Well, technically, my name is the Master."

"He... he was just here... and then there was this light..." Annie could barely form a sentence.

"Annie," said the Master, grabbing her by the shoulders and looking into her eyes. "Annie, listen to me. It's me. I'm the same person, sort of. I've just regenerated, that's all."

"Regenerated?" she asked.

"It's a little trick the Time Lords use to postpone death," he explained.

"Time Lords?"

"Yes," said the Master. "That's what I am. Do you understand?"

"No."

The Master sighed. "Well, I suppose it's a lot for a human to grasp all at once. I wonder how the Doctor deals with it?"

"What the bloody hell is going on?" cried the Guv, finally able to find his voice. "What happened to my DI?"

"I was shot," said the Master. "So I had to keep myself from dying by reconfiguring all of my body's cells. You see, I'm not human. I'm from a race of beings called the Time Lords. I'm one of that last, actually; they and our homeworld were all destroyed in the Time War. Sam Tyler was just a persona I was using because I got stranded here."

"So you killed Sam, then?" asked Chris.

"No," said the Master. "I'm Sam. I'm Sam with a different face."

"So," said the Guv. "You're my DI? You just... happen to now have a completely new appearance."

"Yes," said the Master.

"And butterflies have just sprung out of me arse!" yelled the Guv.

"Okay," said the Master, rubbing his the bridge of his nose. "I've just regenerated. Can you please not give me a migraine?"

"I'll give you a lot more than that if you don't give me back my DI!" said Gene.

"I can't do that," said the Master. "I'm what you've got now."

"Well, I don't want you," cried the Guv.

"Fine," said the Master, feeling a little hurt. He turned to walk away. After taking a few steps, he paused. "What am I supposed to do now? I'm still stranded here." He turned to the group still staring at him. "Do me a favor, if you ever run into a very strange man with a blue police box, could you tell him I was looking for him? His name's 'The Doctor.'"

"Doctor who?" asked Chris.

"No, just 'The Doctor,'" the Master explained.

"Well, that's dumb," said Gene.

"Don't look at me," said the Master. "I didn't choose it."

"Wait, the Doctor?" asked Phyllis, suddenly. "Curly headed fellow with a long scarf?"

"Used to be," said the Master. "Last I saw him, he was a tall skinny fellow with long sideburns. So you've met him, then?"

"Nice bloke," said Phyllis. "Saved me life."

"Yeah, he does that," said the Master. "Really gets on my nerves. So anyway, if you see him, just let him know I'm around. Although, there's a good chance we could probably run into each other on our own. Maybe if I base myself in Cardiff...?"

"What's there in Cardiff?" asked Chris.

"A rift in time and space," explained the Master. "Don't worry, it's harmless. Unless maybe you fall through it or something. Ah well... I suppose I'll be off then."

"Wait," said Annie, taking a few steps towards him. "You can't just leave."

"Why not?" said the Master. "You all obviously don't want me around."

"When's that ever stopped you?" muttered Ray.

"But you're right," continued the Master. "I wouldn't want to stay in Cardiff; Captain Jack could prove a handful. Haha... I just thought about offering myself to UNIT! That would be utterly fantastic!"

"Wait a minute," interrupted Gene. "I'm running this show, and you're technically still my DI, no matter what face you happen to be wearing to match with the new Spring colors that are all the rage now in London."

The Master let out a deep sigh. "So...? What do you propose, then?"

"Well," said the Guv. "I don't know about you, but I intend to get thoroughly plastered."

"Let me guess... I'm buying?"

"Well, I see you're ability to deduce reasonably hasn't altered as well. To the Pub."

"To the Pub," agreed the Master, walking in step with Gene. The usuals began to group behind them.

"So tell me more about these Time Whores..." said the Guv, on their way out.

"That's Time _Lords_!" said the Master, shaking his head. He could tell that migraine was about to come back real soon.


End file.
